Ophthalmic Dispensing in Jamaica | Page 6STEM Building | Page 1

ECC host Newbery Medal-winningauthor Kwame Alexander | See page 1TODAY

Buffalo International Airport

ECC, TSA partnership success now extends to Boston and New York City | Page 3

In recent years, Western New York has experienced an influx of refugees from war-torn countries. But as they continue tosuccessfully resettle in Buffalo annually, manyare too old to enroll in the Buffalo PublicSchool system and receive the remediationnecessary to thrive forward with further education. This was the impetus for the partnership

between Erie Community College’s PathwaysProgram and Journey’s End Refugee Servicesthat produced the Making a Connection(MAC) program, formed on September 1,2015 to offer these more mature students analternative option to achieving their educa-tional, vocational and employment goals.“ECC is a gateway for many residents into

higher education,” said college President JackQuinn. “To team with a tremendous organi-zation like Journey’s End to educate our region’s newest residents is both a tremendousopportunity and the latest example of howthis college is helping to move our ever-expanding communities forward.”Taught by New York State-certified teachers

that address all areas of content covered in

high school and on the TASC exam, the program serves 16- to 24-year-old English as aSecond Language (ESL) students that haveresettled in Buffalo; are seeking to obtaintheir High School Equivalency (HSE)diploma; and, eventually, would like to matriculate into higher education courses atErie Community College. Since this past September, 150 students have entered theprogram, which now has a waiting list and islooking to expand in the future.In addition to servicing these individuals,

Journey’s End has created a specializedevening program for English language learner(ELL) students of all ages that need their

equivalency diploma for collegiate admission.“Through our experiences working with

English language learners, we quickly realized the traditional education systemrarely produces successful outcomes for ELL students,” said Donna Pepero, director of education at Journey's End. “They presentwith unique circumstances and require manylevels of support to succeed. Through ourpartnership with ECC Pathways, we’re ableto build upon our MAC Program and develop an out-of-the-box approach, holistically addressing the needs of our students. The success of our program was immediate, transitioning 14 students into college.”

The program currently resides in Buffalo’s Annunciation Greek OrthodoxChurch Community Center on Delaware Avenue. Classes run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.,Monday through Thursday; and tutoring andgym activities are scheduled for Fridays from9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Additionally, the program offers on-campus HSE classes at ECC CityCampus in the evening for students that areworking or unable to attend the day program.

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City Campus hosts Newbery Medal-winning author Kwame Alexander

ECC, Journey’s End find success through Making a Connection program partnership

Erie Community College’s English Department welcomed the 2015 John Newbery Medal for the Most

Distinguished Contribution to American literature for Children when author KwameAlexander—honored for his work on TheCrossover —discussed his latest work withstudents and faculty this past November atthe college’s City Campus.

Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator,

New York Times bestselling author of 21books. The founder of two organizations,Book-in-a-Day and LEAP for Ghana, he regularly travels the world as a literacy advocateand expert. Kwame has owned several publishing companies, written for stage andTV (TLC's "Hip Hop Harry"), recorded aCD, produced jazz and book festivals, hosteda radio show, and taught high school English.In 2015, Kwame served as Bank Street

College of Education’s first writer-in-residence.Visit his website at KwameAlexander.com.

The Newbery Medal was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller JohnNewbery. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, adivision of the American Library Association,to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.

Best-selling author and Newbery Medal winner Kwame Alexander meets with students at City Campus

Design plans for North Campus STEM building come into focusThis past fall, ECC President Jack

Quinn joined Erie County ExecutiveMark C. Poloncarz to preview the

results of the schematic design phase for thenew science, technology, engineering andmathematics (“STEM”) building planned forECC’s North Campus. Preliminary floor plansfor the approximately 57,000 square footbuilding were developed with input and information from faculty as well as site visitsand evaluation of current space utilization atthe campus, and reflect a design that clearlyidentifies the structure as a “technology”building.

“This is an extremely important develop-ment, one we’ve worked on with our countypartners for a very long time,” said ECC President Jack Quinn. “With these architecturalrenderings and planned spring groundbreaking,we can finally see the light at the end of thetunnel. Western New York needs to continueto expand its science, technology, engineering

and math capabilities. This STEM-focusedacademic building and ECC’s career-focusedcourses will enable such training for our students and, in turn, further enhance Erie County’s future with a home-grownworkforce.”

The building is proposed to be two storiesand approximately 57,000 gross square feet inarea. It will contain labs, prep rooms and support spaces for ECC’s Biology, Chemistry,Physics and Engineering Science programs aswell as shared instructional spaces, collaborativestudy spaces, a tutoring center and faculty offices. A small café is proposed to be locatedat the first floor adjacent to the main entryplaza which will provide a modest outdoorseating area to support the café.

Improvements to the existing campus quadwill include a paved entry plaza with integratedseating elements, walkways to connect importantnodes and destinations within the quad, andadditional landscaping to reinforce a sense of

place. An important goal of the project hasbeen the development of a building designand concept for site improvements to transform the campus and foster a sense of energy and activity.

The project is also pursuing LEED Silvercertification and, as part of the design process,energy modeling has been used to evaluate efficiency and comparative life-cycle costs ofvarious HVAC system options. With the conclusion of the Schematic Design Phase, the project now enters the Design DevelopmentPhase, where the project scope and programwill be fine-tuned before the last phase of design, production of final Construction Documents.

The Erie Community College STEM Building is on schedule for construction tostart in May 2016 and for the building to openSeptember 2017.

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“This is an extremely important development, one we’ve worked on with ourcounty partners for a very long time,” said ECC President Jack Quinn. “With thesearchitectural renderings and planned spring groundbreaking, we can finally see thelight at the end of the tunnel.”

S T E MScience Technology Engineering Math

T ravelers traversing between Northeastairports this last holiday season didn’thave to pass security before finding

employees with Erie Community College-aided training.

ECC and the U.S. Transportation SecurityAdministration (TSA) honored its first class of graduates from their Homeland Securitytraining partnership in June 2014, with a ceremony held at the Buffalo-Niagara International Airport. More than a year later,the partnership’s overwhelming success hasnow spread outside Erie County, connectingout-of-state TSA employees at Boston’s LoganInternational Airport and New York’s JFKand LaGuardia International airports withvital security training and college creditsthrough online courses at ECC.

“This is yet another example of ECC quietly providing specialized training for ourcountry’s workforce,” said ECC PresidentJack Quinn. “We’ve been providing such critical training across Western New York fordecades, but this partnership has certainly expanded our capabilities past our home turf.”

The TSA is currently partnering with selectcommunity colleges to provide the airportstaffs throughout the nation with training, aswell as the opportunity to work toward a TSACertificate of Achievement in Homeland Security and/or Associate Degree in HomelandSecurity or a related field. The TSA launchedthe program in 2008—with airports and community colleges in locations like Baltimore, San Antonio and Washington,D.C.—to determine the best approach to educating employees while causing minimalinterruption to their work schedule. In spring2013, ten new airports joined the AssociatesProgram, including Buffalo-Niagara International Airport (BUF) along with itscollege partner, Erie Community College.

In its first year, ECC honored 10 programgrads with a TSA Certificate of Achievement.This fall, the program’s headcount balloonedto 145, with students enrolled in courses likeIntro to Homeland Security and Transportation

and Border Security, and all are encouraged to use their credits toward either an eventualassociate or bachelor’s degree.

“Erie Community College gives TSA em-ployees the opportunity to continue educationand pursue a degree in Homeland Security,”said Randy Gagnier, TSA training managerand employee at Boston’s Logan InternationalAirport. “The critical thinking that is requiredof the course assignments helps us performwith a better sense of awareness, and I knowwith each week that goes by, Erie CommunityCollege is making me a better TSA employeehere at Logan.”

What makes ECC an ideal collegiate institution to lead this type of TSA training isits experience in online education. The collegealready offers over 250 online courses (in a variety of concentrations) each semester.

Abbreviated winter and summer sessionsalso offer multiple sections of online coursesin several disciplines; and ECC uses “best prac-tices”models and rubrics to manage its onlinecourse delivery, with mentor and tutoring services also available. Per the TSA Programspecifically, faculty from the college’s nationallylauded Homeland Security Certificate Program—recently ranked eighth in the U.S.among two-year schools by Community College Week—are highly qualified to teachtraining courses, given their previous employmentin criminal justice, cybersecurity and emergencymanagement.

And, the courses are convenient for working

professionals, something that helps while toilingin a field as demanding as transportation security.

“The fact that employees can schedule theirown time in order to take the classes is a greatadvantage,” said Eileen Fernandez, TSA education coordinator at New York’s JFK International Airport. “JFK no longer has toaccommodate employees’ work schedules andthat is an advantage for the agency; and sinceECC classes are online, room coordination foremployees is no longer needed.”

Based on survey numbers, only 16 percentof TSA screeners have an associate degree orhigher. With this program, TSA officers areexposed to college-level education and how itcan help improve their job performance;teaches them about the history of and needfor Homeland Security; and motivates themto continue their education. Based on its current success, ECC’s TSA partnership plansto continue to grow throughout the Northeastand across the U.S., and will continue to provide career-focused education opportunitiesfor future semesters’ worth of online students.

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ECC, TSA partnership success now extends to Boston and New York City

TransportationSecurityAdministration

Bost

on

New

York

City

4

“This is yet another ex-

ample of ECC quietly

providing specialized

training for our coun-

try’s workforce,”

“We’ve been providing

such critical training

across Western New

York for decades, but

this partnership has

certainly expanded our

capabilities past our

home turf.”

– ECC President

Jack Quinn

ECC, TSA partnership success now extends to Boston and New York City

TransportationSecurityAdministration

Brian Porter, assistant professor of Humanitiesat ECC's North Campus, recently picked upprestigious awards for his artwork at a pair of fallshows.Porter earned a Jurors Award for his chalk and

pastel portrait, “Romano” (pictured above) at the Rochester Art Club member show, held inPittsford. That same portrait was chosen amongmore than 1,000 entries for 9th Honorable Mention in the competitive Non-CommissionedPortrait category of the Portrait Society of America’s Members Only Competition.According to an awards letter from the Portrait

Society of America, the latter of the two awardswas secured based on the required drawing skillsfor the project, as well as originality, tonal values,design, treatment of the edges, color harmony,technical proficiency within the potential of themedium, and overall ability to communicate theartist’s idea. Along with his overall placement,Porter’s piece was also featured in InternationalArtist Magazine and The Art of the Portrait Journal.Porter was recently accepted as an exhibiting

member, by a juried process, to the prestigiousBuffalo Society of Artists.

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E rie Community College completed one of its finest fallseasons and set some records in

the process while competing in the National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association.

Three of the four fall ECC teamstripled their win totals from last season,while one stayed on course. An ECC fallathlete was recognized for weekly performances by the NJCAA sixteentimes. Three won national awards,

while the other 13 were acknowledged regionally.

“We had a tremendous fall season hereat ECC,” ECC athletic director PeterJerebko said. “I couldn’t be happier forthe athletes and coaches in one of ourbest-ever overall seasons.”

ECC’s football team registered its firstwinning season in nearly a decade with a6-4 record under first-year head coachScott Pilkey. The team ended its seasonon a three-game winning streak, outscoringthe opposition 91-22 during that span.And amid its successful campaign,Antwon Burton, who played for the Katsduring the 2001 and 2002 seasons, became the first football alumni enshrinedinto the ECC Athletics Hall of Fame. Burton went on to Division I Temple University from ECC before signing withseveral National Football League teams.

The women’s soccer team had its finestseason in program history with a record-setting 11 wins. The Lady Kats improved.453 from last year’s 3-11 season by going11-7 overall. They hosted their first-everplayoff game, which it won, 4-0, overJamestown Community College in RegionIII of the NJCAA before bowing to Finger Lakes Community College in thesemifinals. The men’s soccer team alsohad great success this season, finishing 9-8and securing a playoff berth. As with thewomen’s team, the men improved from athree-win season the previous fall. TheKats lost a quarterfinal region game toOnondaga Community College, 1-0, toend the season.

Volleyball equaled its win total fromlast season with eight before being eliminated in the WNYAC playoffs.

Assistant Professor winsawards for portrait

Athletics round-up: Looking back ona tremendous fall season

Interested in pursuing a scholarship? Website: www.ecc.edu/scholarships Address: City Campus, room 110 Phone: 716-851-1990Email: scholarship@ecc.edu

Antwon Burton ‘02 (right) inducted into the ECC Athletics Hall of Fame

“Romano” chalk and pastel by Brian Porter

Upcoming Athletic Events

February 25-27, 2016ECC is hosting the men's and women's

NJCAA national bowling championshipsat Airport Lanes in Cheektowaga

February 27-28, 2016Men's hockey attempts second-consecutive

NJCAA national championshipin Binghamton, NY

February 27-28, 2016Women's basketball compete

in regional playoffs at the highest seed's location

February 27-28, 2016Men's basketball compete

in regional playoffs at the highest seed's location

O n December 4, Ray Bednarski'89, president and CEO of Kideney Architects in Buffalo,

joined Joe Lenahan, principal at Kideney,to present details about the new academicSTEM building for ECC's North Campusto a group of distinguishedalumni at a breakfast at theStatler Erie Room.

Bednarski joined the firm ofKideney Smith Fitzgerald andLaping in 1989 right aftergraduating from ECC's Archi-tectural Technology Program.He went on to the Universityat Buffalo where he completedhis Bachelor's degree in Architecture in1996 and became a licensed NYS archi-tect in 1998. In 2003, Bednarski wasnamed an associate at Kideney, becamepartner/vice president in 2008, and entered his current position as presidentand CEO in January 2013. He also serves

as chairman of the ECC ArchitecturalTechnology Advisory Board, and president-elect of the Board of RonaldMcDonald House Charities of WNY.

Some of Bednarski's many projects include additions at Kenmore Mercy and

St. Joseph Hospitals, a new office building for the FBI indowntown Buffalo, projects for Key Bank in Buffalo andAlbany, multiple K-12 schoolprojects for Buffalo, NorthTonawanda, and WilliamsvilleSchools, long-term residentialcare facilities in Orchard Park,Batavia, Pittsford, and Oxford,

NY, St. Stephen’s RC Church on GrandIsland, and a new cathedral in Lancasterfor the Polish National Catholic Church.

Bednarski will be honored as one ofECC's distinguished alumni at CelebrateECC on March 10.

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ECC students don’t spend all their time onthe college’s three campuses. And often times,their education takes them well outside ErieCounty lines. In the case of senior Ophthalmic Dispensing

student Sabrina Parkin, her career-focusedtraining took her to the island of Jamaica lastDecember to both serve on a vision care mission and to embrace her roots. “Jamaica is a part of my heritage, and a country

that was home to many of my ancestors,” saidParkin. “A big part of my identity drove me tohelp Jamaicans the way I know best: as a certifiedoptician.”Located in the Caribbean Sea, Jamaica is

about 90 miles south of Cuba. With a populationof approximately 2.8 million people, Jamaica isthe second poorest country in the Caribbeanfollowing Haiti. The country faces many difficulties in the field of medicine, and its residents are not able to receive proper medicalcare because its local facilities lack desperatelyneeded technology. Enter Parkin, whose Ophthalmic Dispensing

education at ECC prepared her to spend threedays providing vision screenings to students atthe Llandilo School of Special Education inSavanna-La-Mar (Sav), Jamaica. Throughscreenings of more than 100 students in need,about 30 percent received updated prescriptionsand corrective eyewear at no cost. Ophthalmic dispensers (opticians) are licensed

professionals who dispense eyeglasses and/orcontact lenses to the public from prescriptionswritten by eye doctors. Such services are oftremendous aid to indigent or third worldpopulations. And with the increase in the U.S.population and the aging of the baby boomergeneration, the demand for ophthalmic dispensing services—whether in private businesses, health maintenance organizationsor professional eye care offices—has risen.

Student takes ophthalmic dispensing skillsto Jamaica

Alumni Spotlight Raymond Bednarski ’89

2016 Celebrate ECC honoreesOn March 10, the following individuals and organizations will be honored at

Celebrate ECC for their demonstration of our motto, “Start Here. Go Anywhere!”

This year’s Distinguished Alumni Award winners include:Patricia Thomas ‘79 – Vice President of Optical Operations, North Eastern Eye InstituteRaymond Bednarski ‘89 – President and CEO, Kideney Architects, P.C.Honorable Lenora B. Foote ‘90 – Support Magistrate, Erie County Family CourtDiane Slawinowski, DDS ‘90 – General DentistryClinton Ronan ‘94 – Command Chief Master Sergeant, 914th Airlift Wing, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, N.Y.

Lauraine Neal, RN ‘96 – Assistant Professor, D’Youville College and Adjunct RN Clinical Instructor, Trocaire College

The 2016 ECC Distinguished Alumni Employee Award will be presented to:Anthony D’Alessio ‘88 – Computer Systems TechnologyChair, Nanotechnology Department; Associate Professor Electrical Engineering

Technology, Erie Community College

The 2016 Louis J. Billittier Honorary Alumni Award will be presented to:Santo Rizzo – Retired Director of Center for Teaching, Learning and Assessment; Professor, Health Wellness and Physical Education, Erie Community College

The 2016 ECC Foundation Award will be presented to:Myra Conley – Owner and CEO, Medlab, Inc.Erie Community College Foundation Scholarship Supporter

The 2016 President’s Award will be presented to:National Grid

For tickets contact Stephanie King, director of Alumni Relations atkings@ecc.edu or 851-1999

Ray Bednarski '89

O n behalf of the students, facultyand staff of Erie

Community College, Iwould like to thank you forreading about some of ourrecent achievements. Sincearriving at this venerable institution in 2008, I’ve beenconsistently amazed at notonly the good news we’vebeen able to share, but alsoat the focused educational

and professional opportunities we’re able to provide forincoming students, year after year. We offer more than 100 degree and certificate programs

in the areas of Business and Public Service, Health Sciences, Liberal Arts and Engineering and Technologies,designed by an award-winning faculty with the purpose ofadvancing students forward. Our three-campus collegeprovides an accommodating environment, and is consistently ranked as one of the nation’s top associate degree producers—as well as the number one choice ofWestern New York high school students and veterans.According to the U.S. Department of Education’s

College Affordability and Transparency Center, our college’s average net price is the lowest in New York.Students can enter ECC, endure through their first college classes, then continue toward a one-year certificate, two-year degree or utilize our comprehensivetransfer agreements with a litany of colleges or universities—all while saving on tuition costs. Howmuch can a student save by attending ECC? Look up thetuition cost of your local public and private universities.Compare these totals with the cost of a year at our college—taking the same classes offered at a traditionalfour-year—and you’ll see why an ECC education makessense. Do these savings come at the expense of opportunity?

Absolutely not. Aside from our associate degree-relatedsuccesses, the college boasts more than 25 one-year certificate programs, all crafted to train students for sustainable professions in the region. And, when it comesto connections, the college currently boasts more than 300partnerships with area businesses like Delaware North,Moog and Solar City, all knowledgeable of ECC’s career-focused curriculum.I, along with every member of our college community,

am dedicated to continuing this momentum of goodnews. Until next semester, stay tuned for more excitingdetails for students interested in starting, restarting orredirecting their academic journey at Erie Community College.

Sincerely,

Jack Quinn,President of Erie Community College

716.851.1ECC www.ecc.edu

City Campus121 Ellicott Street Buffalo, NY 14203

North Campus6205 Main Street Williamsville, NY 14221

South Campus4041 Southwestern blvd.Orchard Park, NY 14127

Start Here.

Go Anywhere!

Invest in your future—at ECCe—at ECCfuturfuturInvest in your

Invest in youre—at ECCe—at ECC

Invest in your

e—at ECCe—at ECC

Invest in your

ECC Today is produced by the ECC Public Relations Department. Please contact their office at 716.851.1866 with questions, comments or submissions.

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